Sustainability Quick Wins: Part 2 – Recycle, Refill, Reuse

When we’re talking about sustainability in general, the topic of plastic waste is almost always the first thing people think about. We’ve all seen photos of turtles caught in plastic rings from drinks cans, and while they’re less common now (most companies use boxes instead these days) it’s an image that stays with me, and is really only the tip of the proverbial iceberg.

The iceberg I’m talking about is, of course, the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. The largest of five offshore plastic accumulation zones in the world’s oceans, the GPGP covers a surface area of 1.6 million square kilometres which is approximately three times the size of France. It’s estimated 100,000 tonnes of plastic float in the gyre, which is the equivalent of over 740 Boeing 777’s.

Most of this plastic is petroleum-based, and while it breaks down to a point, the process is so slow as to be essentially negligible. We’re not only harming the environment, which I know some people dismiss as a wild, nebulous thing that only applies to animals, but it’s important to remember that it’s our environment, too. This is in our water supply, our food sources, in the air we breathe, and yes, in us, too. It came to light only a few years ago that babies are being born with microplastics inside them, crossing through the placenta from their parent.

Now, I know you’re probably thinking ‘this is all extremely bleak’, and you’re right, but that doesn’t mean there’s nothing to be done about it. In fact, there are some very easy things that can help reduce these issues!

Recycle! No matter where you are, at work or at home, recycle as much and as accurately as you can. Tins, plastic bottles, boxes, yogurt pots – you’d be amazed how much you can recycle. Always have a quick gander at the label as most products will let you know how to go about disposing of it, give it a rinse under a tap, and off it goes to be broken down and reused in a new guise! Of course, most plastics in the ocean don’t come from domestic waste, and it would be foolish to pretend it does (in fact, around 75% of plastic found in the GPGP comes from fishing activities) but that doesn’t mean we can’t all still try to make a difference. The recycling rate for household waste decreased across almost all UK countries in 2021, so there’s still work to be done!

Refill! It’s become fairly trendy to have a refillable water bottle or coffee cup, which is always wonderful to see, but have you considered other areas you might be able to transfer this same mindset to? Washing up liquid, hand soap, shower gel, laundry detergent, to name but a few. Also foodstuffs, usually from small, local businesses, for which we’re very lucky here in Norfolk. If you don’t have a local shop that does refills, of course, you might be interested to know that supermarket giants Asda are slowly rolling out refill zones to more and more stores. It’s my hope that this will inspire other grocery shops to offer something similar, and make refilling much more accessible. It’s not only better from a sustainability perspective, but it’s a lot cheaper, too!

Reuse! We very much live in a “bin it” culture. Fast fashion is probably the worst culprit for this, having generated more CO2 in 2022 than aviation and shipping combined. Clothing sales doubled from 100 to 200 billion units a year, while the average number of times an item was worn decreased from 36% overall. Aside from the sustainability aspect of the industry, there are a lot of complicated ethics involved. Not everyone can afford slow fashion, but by reusing things, having a wander around charity shops, or even simply fixing a garment rather than throwing it away immediately, a difference can be made.

It’s very easy to get swept up in all the negativity of pollution – I’ve been there myself! Wondering what’s the point, what difference can I really make, but if everyone pulls together, we can really see change. Companies are packaging their products with sustainability in mind, because of pressure being put on by consumers. Biodegradable plastics are being seen more and more as a viable alternative, and there’s some great research being done on plastic-eating bacteria.

In the meantime, vote with your wallets and your actions! It really does make a difference!

Links:

Great Pacific Garbage Patch – The Great Pacific Garbage Patch | The Ocean Cleanup
Plastic Decomposition – How Long Does It Take for Plastic to Decompose? | HowStuffWorks
Microplastics in Humans – Microplastics in humans: Nanoplastics can cross placenta into unborn babies, study reveals | The Independent
UK Recycling Stats – Progress report on recycling and recovery targets – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
Asda Refills – Asda revamps refill proposition and guarantees cheaper prices
Fast Fashion – The 10 Essential Fast Fashion Statistics | Earth.Org
Plastic-Eating Bacteria – How plastic-eating bacteria actually work – a chemist explains (theconversation.com)

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